Personal Tale Prominent In Vetting Of State Supreme Court Nominee

DANIELA ALTIMARI

HARTFORD — Carmen Espinosa, who left Puerto Rico as a 3-year-old, grew up in a New Britain housing project and worked in a grocery store to pay for college, moved closer Friday to becoming the first Hispanic justice on the state's highest court.

The legislature's judiciary committee approved her for a seat on the Connecticut Supreme Court. Her nomination, made by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy last month, now goes to the full General Assembly for consideration.

Espinosa, who is 63 and lives in Southington, credited her parents for teaching her the values of hard work and perseverance.

"When I think of our early years in New Britain, I marvel at how courageous my parents were," she said. "They left a warm island and settled in a place of cold and snow and where they could not speak the language."

During an hour-long confirmation hearing, lawmakers grilled Espinosa on everything from her temperament to her views on the three branches of government. She was asked for her opinion on whether the Constitution should be viewed as unchangeable or seen through the lens of modern times.

She suggested the latter. "History has evolved and life today is different than it was back then," Espinosa said.

Sen. Michael McLachlan, a Republican from Danbury, asked Espinosa which document affords citizens a greater right to bear arms: the Connecticut Constitution or the 2nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

Espinosa demurred, saying the matter may come before the court and she did not want to give the appearance of a prejudged opinion.

Ultimately, it was Espinosa's personal journey, more than her legal views, that was the focus of the hearing.

She grew up poor, the daughter of a laborer and a factory worker, and was the first member of her extended family to graduate from college. She received a master's degree at Brown University and a law degree from George Washington University. Before becoming a judge, she was taught French and Spanish, worked in the FBI and was a federal prosecutor.

"You're life story is truly an impressive one," said Rep. Gerald Fox, D-Stamford, and a co-chairman of the committee.

Espinosa was appointed as a judge of the Superior Court by Gov. Lowell P. Weicker Jr. in 1992; she was the first Hispanic jurist on the Connecticut bench. She ascended to the Appellate Court in 2011, and once again was the first Hispanic to achieve that position.

She invoked the words of Sonia Sotomayor, the first Hispanic justice of the U.S. Supreme Court: "If you try and be stubborn about trying, you can do what you set your mind to."

But, Espinosa added, "for all the fanfare of being first in any field, there is the cold reality that being first means that there are added expectations and perhaps the not-so-subtle scrutiny of those who would question your qualifications."

Espinosa's nomination has national significance. She said she recently learned that there are only seven Hispanics sitting on state Supreme Courts in the U.S. "I hope that my story inspires others to reach beyond what they think is possible and be undeterred to reach their dreams," she said.

Sen. Paul Doyle, a Democrat from Wethersfield, said he is inspired by Espinosa's biography. "How you got yourself … here today is so impressive, because others in your same position — probably most — wouldn't be where you are today," he told her.

"But I'll be honest," Doyle added, "I'm not voting for you for your race, I'm voting for you for your intellect and your skill and I look forward to following your career on the Supreme Court."